Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/16/2017

It was the initial week of Stanley Cup Playoff action, and with eight hotly contested series, the action was plentiful.  Seemingly more than any other sport, playoff wins on the road seem more plentiful despite rabid crowds.  One way to win on the road is to not allow any goals.  And that's exactly what Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators did.  Two games, 59 shots on goal, clean slate.  And this wasn't against just any team, but the number one seed Chicago Blackhawks, who many had penciled in as a Stanley Cup favorite.  Rinne continued his success into Monday with an overtime win with just two goals.  The Blackhawks may have played their last game at home in the 2016-17 season, and if they have, there will be bad memories of being stonewalled by the Finnish superstar goalie Rinne.

Sportsman of the Week Ending 2/14/2016

It's that time on the sports calendar where football no longer dominates the national scene and so called spring sports take over the airwaves.  Basketball, hockey, golf, soccer, and NASCAR are all getting rolling in 2016.  This week, a hockey team, led by our Sportsman of the Week, made a big statement for the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Patrick Eaves of the Dallas Stars played his best period of the season (maybe life) in skewing the rival Chicago Blackhawks for a hat trick in the first period of a critical tilt.  Behind his three goals, the Stars landed a 4-2 victory on enemy ice (for only the 7th regulation loss for Chicago on the season).  Further, the Stars have now won three straight,  including a 4-3 victory (that was 4-0 entering the 3rd period) over the NHL leading Washington Capitals, their second victory over them on the season (including one of only four home losses for Alex Ovechkin and crew earlier in the season).  On the week, Eaves scored 4 goals with a pair of assists in three victories to position the Stars as the Western Conference top seed at the moment.  Effort worthy of our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 12/13/2015

It's an amazing time for sports as the NFL enters its last quarter of the regular season, the NBA and NHL ramp up with story lines developing, and college football gears up for what promises to be an exciting playoff.  It's the NHL this week that has produced the emerging star of the game.  The Chicago Blackhawks' Patrick Kane is scoring points like nobody's business.  Record breaking style.  The 27-year-old American has a point in 26 straight games, the longest NHL streak since Bill Clinton was elected President the first time.  Kane's league leading 46 points are setting the pace for all players this season.  The last time he didn't score a point was October 15.  Two months later, the streak goes on for our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 6/1/2015

As the Stanley Cup semifinals winded down, the Chicago Blackhawks seemed to will their way past the Anaheim Ducks.  Captain Jonathan Toews seemed to be in the middle of the action at all points.  Coming into the week tied 2-2 in the series, the Toews scored two late goes in Game 5 miraculously top send the game to overtime (but an eventual 5-4 loss).  In Games 6 and 7, Toews continued to be in the middle of the action, skating to a +2 in a Game 6 victory, and scoring two goals himself in Game 7 on the road in Anaheim.  When the going gets the toughest, the Blackhawks look to their captain, our Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!